Can You Love Me Again?
by Areti
Summary: Damon Salvatore never thought that not only would he have to meet Elena Gilbert again, but also work with her, after she left him at the altar 5 years ago. What happens when their worlds collide again, after having put so much effort into staying away from each other and building new lives of their own? AU. AH.
1. Prologue

Prologue

5 years and a half earlier.

"Damon where are you taking me? We've been walking for over 20 minutes and I'm dying of curiosity!"

"Patience, Lena. Wait and you'll see", he said, and she could practically hear the smirk in his voice. That smirk that could make her go crazy in a matter of seconds. She wasn't sure in which way though...

As he was gently guiding her through wherever it was he was guiding her, she took a moment to think of how lucky she felt to have him. If someone asked her about Damon Salvatore a year ago, she would say without a second thought that he was just another self-absorbed, arrogant college boy, who has slept with more women than he can count. But that wasn't the case. Well, truthfully, he was a little but arrogant, and he had shared a bed with a lot of college girls, but all of these didn't matter. At least not to her.

Because Damon was the only one who saw beneath the "I'm okay" mask that used to hide her true feelings after her parents' death. He was the one that made her feel, after she wished she had died along with her beloved family members at that tragic car accident. All in all, he was the one person that understood what she needed, which was to forget the past that haunted her every single day.

And he did. With his funny comments, his intelligence, his charming personality and most of all, his unconditional love for her, he made her believe that her life would go on after all. He made her happy. After this whole year of them being together, she was now sure of that.

Suddenly he stopped walking, pulling her out of her thoughts. He gently untied her eyes, and she immediately knew where they were. "Their place", he used to call it. It was a wooden bench under a beautiful almond tree, which provided enough shadow for people to relax while sitting it. Fortunately, it was located considerably far from the Mystic Falls VA University, which was one of the reasons she loved that place. After her parents death, she used to go there everyday just so that she could feel isolated from the entire world. Yet, the main reason why she adored that-otherwise indifferent- place was because it was there where she really met Damon.

Of course, she already knew him by sight as they were attending the same University, but it was there the where she got to know him. It was there where she felt their souls connecting, the moment she found him sitting in that bench, relaxed and seeming like he didn't have a single care in the world, reading her favorite book; "The Great Gatsby". It was there where she first found out that there might be something more in this "hot" guy, as most girls would call him. I mean, he surely was the infamous Damon Salvatore; the extremely handsome guy that looked like he had just dropped out from a male modeling agency, and he did have reputation of a heartbreaker.

However, he was also that little boy who, at the age of 8, had seen his mother pass away and who hadn't spoken to his father and brother for years. So it wasn't a surprise that he understood all too well how it feels to have no family. He knew how losing the parent you love crushed you, and he could only imagine how losing both of them felt, yet he didn't let her get lost in her grief.

On the other hand, he made it his personal mission to make her laugh. He talked to her about his view on life, about his future ambitions and he showed her that life could also be fun. He challenged her, surprised her, he made her question -and in the end reconsider- the way she had chosen to live her life after the death of her parents; which was through grieving and crying.

That's why when he suddenly bent to one knee in front of her and opened a dark blue velvet box revealing the most beautiful diamond ring she had ever seen, she already knew his question- and her answer to it.

"Elena", he begun, "Luckily for me, you happen to know how much I suck at those kind of speeches", he blew out a dry laugh, "so I will set this one straight; I love you. I love you more than I ever thought I could love someone after my mom's death. I always thought that there was no such thing as 'being in love', but I was wrong. It does exist. I know it does because I can finally feel it. And I only have you to thank.

Thank you for letting me catch a glimpse of what pure love really is like. And now that I am aware of how life-fulfilling is for someone to find the love of their life, I only wish for one more thing; Marry me. Let me get used to what requited love feels like. Let me be your husband, your partner in life, the father of your kids. Let me be your family and let me be yours too. Let me wake up every morning with you by my side. And most importantly, let me have the chance to show you how much i love and appreciate you every day for the rest of our lives. Because I do, Lena. I love you and I always will, no matter what.

I know that we are young and I know that we have our whole lives ahead of us, I mean under different circumstances I wouldn't even think of marriage at 21, but there is only one truth and it's this; I can't imagine my life without you. I know I don't always make the right choices but this is how I know that I am doing the right thing right now; Because I can't bear a single day without you."

She had now tears in her eyes.

"Did I do something wrong?", panic crossed his face. "Elena, baby, if it's too pressuring for you then I promise I will close that box, and never bring it up again until you feel ready, I just," he paused, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, "I just wanted you to know how much you mean to me and how I can't think of my own life- "

"Yes", she whispered, making him stop immediately.

"What?"

"I said yes, Damon.", she replied, her tears now long gone, having been replaced by soft smile on her lips. "I said yes because I can't imagine my life without you too. I can't imagine not hearing your laugh, not seeing that smirk of yours, not smelling that cologne of yours, not tasting your soft lips, not touching your skin, not being with you every day. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, so my answer is yes. Let's get married.", she said while looking at his beautiful icy blue eyes.

Before she could say anything else he pressed his lips against hers, in a soft, yet intense kiss. At that moment, they both felt like they were the happiest people in the world. Neither of them could at that time expect how much sorrow they would cause to each other in the future.


	2. So Cold

Back at you with the first chapter of this story! I would really like to hear your thoughts and feelings on everything so far. Please don't hesitate to ask me anything regarding this story. I know everything seems really confusing right now, but don't worry, I'm going to give you some answers soon enough! I hope you all enjoy it! Reviews are always welcome!

 **Chapter 1**

 **It's so quiet here**

 **And I feel so cold**

 **This house no longer**

 **Feels like home**

 **Present**

"Elena Gilbert, you are going to wear that gorgeous dress at the announcement of the new Marketing Director tomorrow night and I'm not hearing another word!"

"I don't know Care. Isn't it a little too much? I don't want to make the wrong impression to my new colleague" Elena frowned while studying her reflection on the mirror.

"Come on Elena, you'll look stunning in it! And I'm sure that not only your new colleague, but also a certain brown eyed, noble Mikaelson whose name starts with an 'E' will agree with me on this one", the blonde winked at her friend playfully.

"Elijah and I are just friends, Caroline. There is nothing going on between us and there will never be, at least as far as I am concerned.", Elena turned to face her, her expression now serious.

"Why?", the blonde whined while slightly raising her perfectly shaped brows, "Elena, he's definitely everything a girl could ask for; he's handsome, successful, rich, and on top of that he has a good heart. He is exactly what you need! At least give him a chance to prove that to you if he hasn't already."

"Can we drop this? I said he is just a friend and that's it, Care!", she cut her blonde friend off annoyed as she sat on the couch and placed her head on her hands.

Caroline sighed. She knew the past 5 years had been a difficult time for Elena, especially when it came to relationships, so she was familiar with her friend's sudden mood swings.

"Elena I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that, I just... I really am trying to help you move on and finally let go of the past. That doesn't mean I always know the right way to do so.", she gave her friend a sad smile before placing herself on the couch next to her.

"I know Care.", she let a tear ran down her cheek, "And I really am grateful for everything that you've done for me. You have stood by me through everything and I do appreciate it. I really do. The problem here is me...", Elena wiped the tears from her cheeks as Caroline caressed her back.

"Elena?", the blonde whispered, "Have you ever considered... visiting a therapist, or something?", she looked at her friend, her eyes full of worry and love. "I know it's not my place to ask you something that personal, but I really do think that it could do some good... Talking to someone professional might help you".

"I-I...", she stuttered. Clearly, she hadn't been expecting that kind of question. Truth is, she had made an appointment years ago. Needless to say, she never showed up. She just couldn't bring herself to do it. Because visiting this place, talking to some stranger about _everything_... It meant accepting it and it meant letting it go. And she wasn't ready for that... Deep down, she knew she may never be ready for that, even though this was the main source of her pain.

"I'll think about it, okay?", she instead decided to say, while trying to force a small smile on her face.

* * *

The next day at the office was just another day of the week for Elena. Being a Marketing Manager at the 'Time' was easier than what she expected when she first heard about the job.

Technically, her job required that she promoted the magazine through public relations efforts and events and, along with the Marketing Director, persuade celebrities, like politicians and actors, to decide to photoshoot and interview for the magazine. Of course, knowing that the key to success was good communication between her and the new MD, she was determined to get along with them for the sake of her working career. After all, her job was all she was left with.

That's what she told her boss and the publisher of the magazine, aka Alaric Saltzman, who also happened to be one of her few new friends the past 5 years, when he insisted that they had 'the talk'.

"Look Elena, you know how much I admire your work and I appreciate you as a person and as a professional. But that does not mean that I will ever put up with you or anyone who attempts to jeopardize the success of this magazine. So I will be as clear as possible. Since being a MM in this magazine is a big deal, I trust you to cooperate with your new colleague, who I happen to know personally, in the best way, Elena. I want them to basically feel like home here and your help is required in order to achieve that.", Alaric said seriously while looking at her behind his desk, his arms crossed. He may be her friend outside of work, but he was never one to mix personal life with business. Well, considering how he acted around Jenna Sommers, the chief photographer of the magazine and one of her best friends, he sometimes made some excuses. Clearly, Elena wasn't one of them at that moment.

"Of course, Ric. You know that I have grown to love this magazine as much as you do. I will do my best, I promise.", Elena gave him a reassuring smile.

"I just wanted to make sure. Oh and don't worry, you'll definitely like him. He is a childhood friend of mine, actually. Anyway, see you tonight at the announcement.", he said giving her a friendly smile.

* * *

Standing in front of her full-length mirror, Elena couldn't help but notice how much she had changed throughout the past 5 years. She just wasn't the Elena that she used to be, both physically and mentally; her hair was longer dyed with golden honey highlights, and, in contrast to the straight hairstyle that she used to wear, sleek, polished waves were now framing her beautiful, still youthful face. Even her makeup and clothes were more on point now. She wasn't that girl who studied Marketing on 'a University somewhere in Virginia' anymore. She was Elena Gilbert, the Marketing Manager of 'Time NY', one of the most popular magazines in the city. Being serious and mature and _different_ from what she used to be was part of the job description. It wasn't like she could go out and have fun like her 20-year-old self used to do.

Fun.

'You have responsibilities now. You have people on your work that count on you. You are an adult and you should better act like one if you want others to take you seriously.'

That's what she told herself.

But truth is, she couldn't recall the last time she let herself have fun, after _him_ , even if she tried. The past 5 years had been full of work, which, no matter what she told herself, was a means to keep herself busy. To not think about the mess of a life she had. About her mistakes and about the fact that she had to open up herself to more people, to move on.

Move on.

She was so terrified of doing that. Because that meant that she had to let her guard down and care about someone new, and that meant risking getting hurt all over again. She was sure as hell she couldn't afford this amount of pain not now, not in the future and not ever.

She had endured it once, and the side effects were life-ruining, to say the least. She knew this was the kind of pain that left mental scars behind, so that you never truly forget it.

Aside from that, she had to admit it was impossible for her to find a love that great again, so why bother looking for it? That was not the kind of love you can get over and let go with time. It was the love that consumed you, that made you feel whole. It was the love of her lifetime.

And she was sure she couldn't never replace the memories she had of him and the ones they shared with anybody else. She could never totally invest herself in someone new, who wouldn't be even close enough to how perfect he was. To how perfect he made her feel. So she didn't even make an effort.

Her eyes fell on the dress Caroline talked about earlier. It was a black, knee length, strapless dress. 'It is indeed gorgeous.' she thought. After pairing it up with a diamond necklace and diamond earrings to match, she ran a hand through her long, thick curls and checked herself in the mirror. 'Not even close to stunning, but you look decent' she murmured to herself, before grabbing her leather purse and coat and opening the door of her apartment.

* * *

'That's one hell of a party, right?", Jenna mumbled while downing the third glass of scotch for the night at the bar table.

"It's not a party, Jenna. It's an event. It's the announcement of the new MD, with whom I'll be working with and I don't know if it shows but I'm one hell of a nervous girl!" the brunette replied after seating herself at the bar stool next to her friend and ordering a Cosmopolitan.

"Come on, Elena, whoever they are, they will love you. Its not like they have a reason not to! Don't worry.", she caressed her friend's arm soothingly. Jenna was actually one of the few people Elena had formed a strong bond with after moving to New York. They met on the magazine and after Jenna got to know Caroline too, the three of them quickly became best friends. Elena came to trust Jenna fast enough to make her fully aware of her past, as she was absolutely sure she would never judge her for her past decisions.

"I hope so", Elena exclaimed after taking a sip of her drink. The last thing she wanted was to meet her new colleague drunk. "Anyway, enough talking about me. How are you and Ric going?"

"How do you think?", Jenna buried her face in her hands and let out a frustrated sigh.

"Okay, judging from that look on your face, I'm assuming it's not going well..."

"Well you're right. I mean, we don't work Elena. It's in our magazine's policy that two colleagues cannot form a romantic relationship, so I guess we were doomed from the start. We don't have a future together and we have to admit that to ourselves and stop whatever this is we have the sooner the better...", she uttered more to herself than Elena. After she lifted the glass to her lips and realized her glass was empty for the fourth time, she stood up.

"So, I really have to stop drinking and go make myself useful if I want to keep this job. See you later, okay?", she gave Elena a soft, yet sad smile and grabbed her professional camera.

* * *

One hour had passed since she came to this "party", as most would insist on calling it, and there was no sign of the new Marketing Director. She was utterly and completely bored, and she might as well be the only person in the entire room to feel so, judging from how everyone seemed to have the time of their lives. She gazed around the room, taking in how genuinely happy and relaxed everyone looked. They were so comfortable and carefree while having their photos taken, chatting, drinking and dancing. She couldn't help but wonder, 'don't they have any problems?'

'Of course they do!', her inner voice whispered. 'They just know to shove them to the back of their minds for at least for one night, unlike you who has the depression mood on all the time!'

Suddenly, she felt so suffocated in that room, that after putting her coat on, she hurried down the road leading to the balcony. At least she would both feel and be alone there. The thought made her relax a little, push the piercing cold on the back of her mind and enjoy the breathtaking view of the Brooklyn Bridge in total peace.

"I'm telling you, you have to meet her tonight, you will absolutely like her.", Alaric's distant voice brought her back to reality. She glanced at her watch; she had been standing there for an entire hour!

"The thing is, I don't really think she wants to see me; otherwise she would have showed herself instead of making us look for her, don't you think?", she heard a different, yet male, voice talking now, and from the moment it reached her ears, she knew exactly who it belonged to.

"Oh trust me it has nothing to do with you, it's just, she likes to be isolated sometimes, you know? Oh there she is! Elena!", Alaric shouted.

She slowly turned around only to have her favorite set of icy blue eyes stare widely at her.

"Elena, this Damon Salvatore, the new Marketing Director of the magazine.

Damon, this is Elena Gilbert, the Marketing Manager of 'Time NY'. I'm sure you will cooperate excellently together."


	3. Too Late

Author's Note: Thank you so much for the reviews on the last chapter. Hearing all your different and varying thoughts on the story is what keeps me going. So, most of you wonder why Elena would leave Damon on their wedding day. Since I can't exactly give  
/it away, I am giving you just one clue: Leaving him was the most selfless act she has ever done. So don't hate her just yet. Anyway, here's the second chapter! I hope you all enjoy it. Don't forget to leave a review!

 **Chapter 2**

 **I look into your eyes**

 **Diving into the ocean**

 **I look into your eyes**

 **Falling**

She slowly turned around only to have her favorite set of icy blue eyes stare widely at her.

"Elena, this Damon Salvatore, the new Marketing Director of the magazine. Damon, this is Elena Gilbert, the Marketing Manager of 'Time NY'. I'm sure you will cooperate excellently together."

Damon Salvatore. Her ex-fiancé Damon Salvatore.

Oh my god.

Elena watched as Damon's face changed expression after expression at the sight of her. She kept on staring at him with wide eyes as his face hardened after the initial shock wore off and he seemed to realize what was actually going on. Elena Gilbert,  
/the girl he thought he was going to spend the rest of his life with, was standing a meter away from him after five years.

"Nice to meet you, Elena." He unwillingly extended his hand, forcing a fake smile on his face. It wasn't nearly enough to camouflage the cold look in his eyes. The way he looked at her just then, it was like he hated her. Well, she wouldn't be too surprised  
/if he did.

Elena opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out. It was as if she was hypnotized; she couldn't stop looking at him. It had been five years and she missed the sight of him. Five years and he still looked as gorgeous as he ever had in his black and  
/white tuxedo.

Alaric, who was stunned at what was unfolding in front of him, cleared his throat rather loudly, pulling Elena out of her thoughts.

At this point, she felt like she only had two options. It was either pretend not to know Damon, like he obviously was, or do what she was best at, which was run away. After processing both tempting thoughts for about two seconds, she decided that theyboth  
/weredefinitely out of the question; Ric was smart enough not to buy her fake acting, and she was sure as hell not choosing to leave like a deer caught in headlights. With Damon out of all people turning out to be the new Marketing Director,

/she wasn't sure if avoiding him even for a day was going to be an option again.

"It is nice meeting you too, Damon." She made a move to shake his practically hanging extended hand. Touching him reminded her of the good old times, but with him pulling away so fast as if she'd burn him, her face stiffened at the thought that it was  
/just that: old.

And that was it. That was their first conversation after five years of being apart. They were just standing there, trying to look anywhere but at each other. Despite her having reached the highest level of discomfort possible, she could easily sense he  
/was extremely nervous too. Actually, the tension between them was so thick you could practically cut it with a knife. Talking to each other used to be so easy… Now, it seemed so freaking hard.

"I, um, I think I need to go." She practically choked on her own words before making her way to the balcony door in record time. She might have decided to stay and face him a couple of minutes earlier, but torturing them both like this wasn't going to  
/solve anything. Instead, she decided to put both herself and him out of their misery and leave.

Damon was at a loss for words, something that rarely happened to him. He usually was the confident kind of man, the one who had a talent at breaking the ice easily and lightening up the room in the blink of an eye.

That was until she showed up in front of him like this, which practically made him forget how to talk. Never in a million years would he have ever expected to meet her under these circumstances… He was caught off guard and he hated it. He hated how she  
/made him feel like a little vulnerable boy who stumbled on his own words just by looking at her. And unfortunately, it wasn't just that.

Seeing her again after five years caused old, painful memories that he had tried really hard to shove on the back of his mind make their way to the forefront of his brain. There was a mix of emotions inside his head, emotions and things he never got the  
/chance to tell her. That she never gave him the chance to say.

First of all, he was angry.

He was so angry at her for letting him down, for betraying him, for humiliating him and most of all, he was furious at her for not even letting him know why she did it. She didn't even tell him what it was that he had done so wrong that made her stand  
/him up on their wedding day. She just let him wonder and she turned on her back and left him. Not a phone message, not even a letter. Hell, he would have settled with hearing that message from blondie, anything but nothing.

To top it all, when he finally decided to make a fresh start after five years of living like a ghost because of her, there she was! Popping up out of nowhere, ready to screw up his life and his mind all over again. His lack of luck was truly unbelievable!

So engrossed he was in his own thoughts that he had completely forgotten Alaric had been standing right beside him throughout the entire thing!

"Okay, saying that was awkward is a massive understatement!" he finally exclaimed, slowly pronouncing the word 'understatement'.

"What? No, it went pretty well if you ask me!" Damon blew out a laugh followed by his signature smirk, something he always did when he was trying to hide his nervousness, but Alaric wasn't buying it.

"Do you guys... know each other, or something? Hey look, I know Elena has some issues of her own, but she would never act that way around a stranger, so..."

"I've never met the woman before, Ric! How am I supposed to know why she would storm off like that? Perhaps I remind her of someone… I - Seriously man, I don't know."

Damon groaned. If only this was the truth, things would be so much easier...

After a minute that felt more like an hour, Alaric finally seemed to believe him, though he didn't really make an effort to hide his still lingering suspiciousness.

"I guess you're right..." The line that had formed between his brows minutes ago disappeared, causing Damon to slightly curve his lips upwards. Of course he felt bad for lying to his friend, but it wasn't like he could just blurt out: "Yeah, did I forget  
/to tell you? She used to be my fiancée, too bad she practically stood me up on our wedding day!" He was going to tell him, eventually, but this was neither the time nor the place to drop such a bomb.

"Anyway, she's the Marketing Manager so you'd better get along with her for the sake of the magazine," Alaric carried on, completely ignorant of Damon's lie.

"You know I have my way with women, Ric." Damon waggled his eyebrows teasingly, which only earned him a warning look from his friend.

"We will work just fine together. Don't worry, man," Damon reassured him while raising his hands in surrender.

After Elena entered the room, she stopped in her tracks so as to fully process what had just happened out there. It wasn't a dream. It was real. Damon Salvatore was the new Marketing Director with whom she would have to spend most of her day. What the  
/hell was going on?

Seemed like this was karma's way of punishing her for hurting so ruthlessly the man she loved: by forcing him into her life again.

Because that was what this would get to be. Her torturous punishment.

If leaving him on the day of their wedding had hurt, she couldn't even imagine what kind of sorrow was in line for her now. She would have to see him every day, work with him, talk to him, and watch him move on with his life. And the worst was, she would  
/have to do all of the above while he so obviously showed her how much he hated her. She was so sure he did, it was literally written on his face. This look reminded her of the one he'd had when he was talking about his father. It was full of anger  
/and disgust.

She didn't blame him, though. She had brought this to herself the day she abandoned him without even letting him know the reason. But what was she supposed to say? If he had known, she was sure he would have begged her to stay. He would have said it was  
/okay, but truthfully, it wasn't. It would never be okay. She would never be okay. And he didn't deserve anything less than perfect, much less her screwed-up self.

So, she didn't regret leaving because she knew she had done it for his own well-being. She wished for him to have everything he ever wanted in life, even if she would not get to be the one to give it to him.

Suddenly, she felt a muscular body collide with hers, and she was forcefully shaken back to reality. Unable to steady herself in time, she almost fell on the floor before a pair of strong arms grabbed her by the waist and helped her find her balance.  
/Lifting her face to see who the kind stranger that she had to both apologize to and thank was, she was surprised to find out that it was none other than Elijah Mikaelson.

"Elena, I'm so sorry!" her dark-haired friend began to apologize, but as soon as he took in the sight of her glassy eyes worry crossed his face. "Elena, are you okay?"

"I-I..." She paused, trying to find a believable excuse to explain her frustration, but nothing came to her mind.

"No... Honestly I'm not," she finally whispered as realization dawned on her that there was nothing to say… Her life was a huge failure, and no lie to Elijah or anyone could fix that. Unable to fight back the tears any longer, she squeezed her eyes shut,  
/letting them fall down her cheeks.

"Come on, let's get you out of here," he said, guiding her towards the main exit while stroking her hair and gently wiping the tears from her face.

Little did she know that the man she was crying over had viewed her entire breakdown from a front row seat.

Damon was just standing a meter away from them watching with pure disgust written on his facewhat was happening in front of him. God, had she really just had an emotional breakdown in the middle of the room? She had left him, yet she was the one

sobbing minutes after she saw him… If that was how she dealt with this, what was he supposed to do? Maybe jump off the balcony?

Of course, he couldn't exactly ignore the sting of jealousy he felt just by watching another man comfort her, touch her, pull her close to him like he used to do…

Who was that idiot, anyway? Her dear Prince Charming? Poor Elena batted her eyelashes and he immediately transformed into her trusted servant and took her away from the evil world? God, this guy was unbearable and to think he hadn't even talked to him  
/yet.

Was he her boyfriend?

Just at the mere thought of Elena being in a relationship with another man he nearly lost it. He wasn't stupid; even though he couldn't stand her presence for more than a minute, Damon was fully aware of her beauty, her wittiness and the effect she could  
/have on every man.

Well, all of these stopped matter after she got to show who she really was: a cold- hearted, manipulative traitor. Yeah, that's exactly what she was. She had betrayed him, humiliated him, but worst of all, she had manipulated him into thinking she cared  
/about him.

She made him think that she loved him, that they were made for each other and that they were "soulmates". She made him believe everything she said. And like the idiot he was he fell into her trap; he believed her without a second thought when she said  
/she would never leave him.

Five years ago

"Damon st-stop, I'm going to pass out, I sw- I swear," Elena's voice echoed through her laughter.

They had spent the day at a deserted beach they had just found out not more than 20 minutes away from Mystic Falls. The day had been so peaceful, until the brunette joked that Damon was afraid to get into the water because it was "too cold for his sensitive  
/baby skin".

"You're acting like a little girl!" she mocked him. It was then that he started chasing her. The minute he caught her and started tickling her under the water, her laughter became even louder if that was possible.

"Who's making fun of who now?" He always enjoyed teasing her a little too much. "Apologize, Miss Gilbert and maybe I'll think about it."

"Okay, okay!" She couldn't form a simple phrase due to her laughter. "I'm sorry for making fun of you!" she cried.

"Wrong apology! Oops!" He continued mocking and tickling her until she couldn't take it anymore.

"I'm sorry for calling you a little girl and saying you have baby skin!" she managed to say.

Suddenly, he stopped the tickling and turned her to face him without breaking for a second his tight embrace. She then wrapped her arms and legs around him as he tentatively lifted his hand to softly tuck a loose strand of her wet chocolate hair behind  
/her ear.

He couldn't but admire her beauty. From her sweet brown eyes and her angelic smile to her endless compassion and kindness, she was the most beautiful-inside and out- human being he had ever laid eyes on. This realization only made him surer about what  
/he was about to say. So without breaking eye contact, he gulped, and he nervously uttered the three words he had never spoken out loud before in his entire life.

"I love you, Elena. Don't ever leave me."

Watching her expressions change so fast was what made Damon loosen up a bit. From her eyes going round and her lips parting a little, to eventually having her whole face lit up, after a few seconds that seemed like a century, she said the magic words  
/back.

"I love you too much to ever find the courage to leave you, silly."

Present

Liar, he thought. How could she lie straight to his face? And how could he have trusted her so fucking easily? Recalling old memories of them together always filled him with rage and it made him feel so stupid! He squeezed his fists in order to control  
/himself. He wouldn't let her ruin the rest of his night. She didn't get to control him or his life anymore.

At that moment, Damon made a mental promise to himself; he would not let her make her way into his life ever again. He'd had enough of this woman to last him for a lifetime.

When the car finally pulled up in front of her house, Elena let out an inaudible sigh, and turned to face Elijah, who was already gazing at her.

"Thank you... for tonight. I really have no idea what I would've done if it wasn't for you. Something came up and I- I couldn't keep my composure. I lost it and I feel so ashamed for acting that way... Sorry you had to view that." She felt the need to  
/justify and apologize for not only her breakdown at the party, but also her crying like a baby during the entire car ride. She now felt so guilty for having him her drive her back home while she sniffled in the passenger seat right next to him.

Well, all of her worries about him being irritated or disgusted were vanished when he placed his hand on hers and gave it a gentle squeeze.

"You don't have to thank me, Elena. I did what felt right for me to do. Taking care of you feels right to me. If only you let me do it more often…" he admitted while boring his eyes into hers.

Elena instantly understood where he was leading this to. In contrast to what she let Caroline think, she wasn't blind to Elijah's affections for her. It wasn't like he didn't make it obvious anyway; he didn't miss the chance to compliment her, invite  
/her to dinner, send her flowers and do all those kind of fancy stuff to impress her.

The thing was, she just didn't feel that way for him. Because no matter how "perfect" Elijah was, she never stopped loving someone else, whose imperfections made him perfect to her eyes... That was why she insisted on reminding him that she loved him  
/only as a friend.

"I know you do, and I appreciate it. I really do. You are a great friend to me Elijah. I feel lucky to have you in my life."

His eyes fell the minute the word 'friend' reached his ears and all his hope seemed to die in an instant, something that didn't go unnoticed by Elena. Seeing him so disappointed and sad broke her heart because she did love him; just not in the way he  
/loved her. She wanted to tell him he shouldn't pine for her; she wanted to make him understand that he deserved a hell lot of more than this broken Elena Gilbert who could offer him nothing, but she was pretty sure it would probably fall on deaf  
/ears:

/If after five years of her constantly rejecting him he couldn't get the message on his own, she wasn't sure he could ever get it.

The thing was, she couldn't help but feel like this was her fault. It couldn't be a coincidence that she pushed away every man that had ever tried to love her. He just couldn't shake that feeling of guilt…

She almost made a move to caress his arm to comfort him, to ease some of his pain, but at the last minute decided against it as giving him hope and the false message was something too cruel and neither of them deserved.

So she just chose to end the conversation while pretending not to have noticed the heart-broken look on his face.

"See you tomorrow at work, okay?" she whispered before softly freeing her hand from his grasp. Giving him a small half-smile, she opened the door of his car and quickly got out of it.

After locking her apartment door, she heard her cellphone beep through her purse. Curious about who would leave her a message this late, she checked her voicemail only to be welcomed by the sound of Caroline's bubbly voice.

"Elena, where are you? Ric called me to go pick Jenna up from this event...or party... or whatever, he said he couldn't find you anywhere! You missed all the fun with drunk Jenna! She was like on the fifth shot and she was so wasted she couldn't even  
/walk straight... And then Alaric asked her to let him drive her home but she started crying out, "No, I want Caroline!" and poor Ric had to call me at 1 am to come pick our boozy friend up."

Elena giggled just at the thought of it. Jenna was the most lightweight drinker she'd ever met. Like the kind of person who would take two shots of vodka and be blackout wasted for the rest of the night.

"Anyway, where were you?" the blonde carried on. "Please tell me you brushed your prudish way of thinking aside for this once and wore that hot dress I picked out for you." Elena heard her squeal through the phone. This, ladies and gentlemen, was the  
/Caroline we all knew and loved.

"Oh, I almost forgot, how did it go with the new Marketing Director? Call me when you hear this, I'm dying to know! Bye!"

And with that, the message ended, leaving Elena torn between two awfully difficult options. To tell Caroline and Jenna or not to tell them?

She leaned her back on the door and she slowly fell on her knees while squeezing her cellphone tightly and trying to make up her mind.

She allowed herself to contemplate the options she had. Of course, she wasn't used to keeping secrets from them, but this was different. Even though they were fully aware of everything concerning her and Damon she just didn't feel comfortable talking  
/about him - something they would practically force her to do now that he was back.

She was afraid they would totally freak out and worry over her being okay with working with Damon. She was enough freaked out herself and trying to convince them she was fine would not exactly be any help.

It went without saying that she felt more than blessed to have them as friends; five years of standing by her and helping her fight depression was proof of how awesome they were, but she didn't want them to worry over her, at least not this time. This  
/time she was going to face her problems on her own.

That was what she kept telling herself when she picked up the phone and carefully dialed Caroline's number to inform her of how "the couple of drinks she had earlier really messed up her empty stomach."

After carrying herself to her bedroom she just kicked her shoes off her tired feet and jumped on her bed. She didn't even bother to change her clothes or follow her usual night routine, she just laid on her back and stared at the ceiling, only one thought  
/haunting her mind.

Damon was back.


End file.
